Giant emoji painted on house roil California community

Painted emoji are seen on a house in Manhattan Beach, Calif. on Wednesday, Aug. 7, 2019. The Southern California seaside community is in an uproar after the home was given the new paint job featuring two huge emojis on a bright pink background. Manhattan Beach residents railed against the makeover during a City Council meeting Tuesday night, citing problems with spectators. (AP Photo/Natalie Rice)

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MANHATTAN BEACH, Calif. (AP) — A Southern California seaside community is in an uproar after a home was given a new paint job featuring two huge emoji on a bright pink background.

Manhattan Beach residents railed against the makeover during a City Council meeting Tuesday night, citing problems with spectators and asserting that it was done with bad intent.

One speaker called the paint job graffiti and another said it was an attack on neighbors.

The new paint job appeared after neighbors reported the home was being used for short-term rentals and the homeowner was fined $4,000.

“This all got started because a neighbor was trying to help the city enforce the rules,” resident Dina Doll told the council.

The home in the city’s El Porto neighborhood stands out dramatically on a steep street that descends toward a pleasant beach usually filled with surfers. Both bright yellow emoji are cross-eyed and have distinctly big eyelashes. One has a goofy expression with its tongue hanging out. The other has its mouth zippered shut.